


Old Blue Eyes

by JackiLeigh



Category: White Collar
Genre: Angst and Feels, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-10
Updated: 2018-05-10
Packaged: 2019-05-04 17:59:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14598585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JackiLeigh/pseuds/JackiLeigh
Summary: I had this scene played out in my mind.  It is actually a scene from the series MASH of the good Father Mulcahy giving a solider the last rites, and he sees a single tear.  I just took the idea, with Neal being the solider.  Then I went to work building my story.  I hope you like what I came up with.





	Old Blue Eyes

OLD BLUE EYES

 

AN: I’m not sure where I’m going with this. This scene just demanded to be written. And I think it came out pretty freakin’ well, if I do say so myself. 

Thanks, as always, to my beta, ccluvshorses101.

Jones shook his head. “He’s gone, Peter.” Jones repeated his voice cracking. “He’s gone.”

Peter shook his head as Jones and Diana prevented him from going to Neal’s side and leaning down beside him. Peter had to admit, he had been watching Neal for the past few seconds. There were no signs of life. He had not even seen Neal’s chest rise and fall with a breath.

“I just….” Peter pushed his way past both Jones and Diana.

“Boss!” Diana pleaded, the emotion coming into her voice also. It surprised her she had never expected to feel this way about a con. Not about Neal Caffrey. 

Peter shook his head as he knelt down beside Neal’s still form, lying prone on the cold cement floor of the parking garage. Peter touched Neal’s chest. Neal had lost so much blood in such a short time. Peter had not anticipated Neal’s cover being blown. And he, of course, had not anticipated his C.I. getting shot, much less fatally.

Peter turned his attention to Neal’s face. Peter turned Neal’s head so that he could see Neal’s entire face. Jones and other agents on the scene had made the initial assessment. The ambulance had been called. But, for them, it had just been a formality, a way to remove the body. The ambulance had yet to arrive.

Peter leaned in closer. Through his own tears he thought he saw a single tear run down the side of Neal’s face and disappear into his hairline. Peter wiped his eyes and waited. It happened again, another tear. By this time, Jones and Diana had joined him, curious as to what Peter was looking at.

Peter smiled. 

Diana looked at Peter. “Was that a tear?”

Peter nodded as he began to remove his jacket.

“Dead men don’t cry.” Jones said. He couldn’t help but smile.

Diana unbuttoned Neal’s shirt. She took Peter’s jacket and pressed it hard to Neal’s wound. The action elicited a tear from Neal.

Jones spread the word to the other agents at the scene and put in another call to 9-1-1.

TBC

 

FYI: I got the whole ‘single tear’ thing from an episode of M*A*S*H. I just did more than one so that Peter could be sure Neal was alive.

 

 

Chapter 2

 

AUTHOR’S NOTES: I don’t tend to put any chronology on my stories. But I do have a few spoilers in this chapter so, obviously, this takes place after those events occurred. Enjoy!

How could one day make such a difference? Peter didn’t know, but it could and it did. Peter thought as he paced the surgery waiting room.

Yesterday had been Thanksgiving. El, as always, had invited Neal to eat lunch with her and Peter. Then Neal, El, and Diana, Neal’s official FBI escort, had gone to a special showing at the Met. The museum was just outside Neal’s radius, and Neal had been asking for weeks to see the exhibit. Peter, at first, had said no. He had had no intention of spending his holiday escorting his C.I. around huge, crowded exhibits. But when Peter had heard Diana talk about the exhibit, he knew he had his escort. Peter had, of course, had to ‘sweeten the pot.’ But it had been worth it. Peter had his afternoon of football with his friends. El had a nice time at the museum. They had even had a little planned quiet time when El returned, and all the football fans went home. Yep, yesterday had been great; today, however, not so much.

Diana had stayed at the hospital with Peter. Peter had not asked her too, but she had. She was also full of nervous energy, getting up from her seat every few minutes to gaze through the glass into the operating room doors. She also kept checking the time. She had even had to leave the room a few times to answer calls from members of the White Collar division, concerned about how Neal was doing. It frustrated her she had nothing yet to tell them.

Diana would never admit to herself. But she really liked Neal. Ever since that initial flirt, the first day they met. And the time they spent together in that hotel, lying on the bed, talking about, she didn’t even remember now. She had liked him. Even the surprise evening with he and Sara at her apartment had been nice. Diana had been a little upset, at first, at his gall. But the evening had turned out to be very, unexpectantly, pleasant. And Caffrey did make a mean risotto. It had also been incredibly sweet of him to bring her dinner in the van, especially since she had paid $1,000 for their ‘date.’ She never lost sight of the con, but the man, as it turned out, was really a pretty decent guy. Unfortunately, her daydream didn’t last long. The memory of Neal lying there, unconscious, originally thought dead, brought her back to reality. She shuttered involuntarily as she got up, again, from her seat, to look through the O.R. doors.

Peter was pacing again. They had originally planned on having Friday off. It was usually not a busy day for the bureau and only a small staff worked. But White Collar had gotten a lead on an old nemesis of Neal’s, Roger Fulton. Neal, of course, had not known him by that name. He had only known one of the man’s many, many aliases. Also, what Neal did not know, and what the rest of White Collar didn’t know is that Roger had discovered Neal’s C.I. status. Roger had told Neal of his discovery right before he had pulled out a gun and shot Neal in the chest. Roger was, of course, now on a slab in the morgue. But that didn’t help anyone deal with Neal’s current situation.

Jones had gone back to the office. He had been operating on autopilot since the gunshot that had ruined his day. He, too, liked Neal. Neal was an easy guy to like. Jones, also, had never lost sight of the con. But the man, he thought, was worth getting to know. Jones shook his head, trying to erase the image of a very still, very bloody, Neal out of his mind. He sat down at his desk, but didn’t know what he should even be doing. He couldn’t report to Hughes, he wasn’t in the office today. Hughes had probably already talked to Peter at the hospital, anyway. He could write his report, well, at least start his report. He couldn’t finish it until he could add something about Neal’s condition. And, right now, he knew nothing.

Jones pulled his jacket off the back of his chair. He decided to head back to the hospital.

El had taken it upon herself to call June after Peter had given her the news. Both women arrived at the hospital at, pretty much, the same time.

“Peter?” El asked, approaching her husband, June right beside her. 

Peter shook his head. “…still in surgery.”

El stared at her husband, something else was bothering him.

“I thought he was dead, El.” Peter looked at her then at June. “We all did. I just…I stared at him. I couldn’t see his chest move…and the blood. I…he looked dead to me.” Peter shook his head. “Then I went over to him and knelt down beside him. Two tears…he was crying. I saw tears.”

“Peter…!” El said, astonished. She really didn’t know what to say.

“We had called the ambulance to pick up the body. He…he’d lost so much blood.” Peter stood up and began to pace. “I should have been tending to him, putting pressure on the wound, something, anything. That whole time…I should have been….”

June stood up and shook her head. “There is no reason to tend to a dead man, Peter.” She said, even though just the thought of losing Neal hurt her deeply. “From what you just said, there was no reason to think any differently than you did. But that’s not important right now. What is, is that Neal is alive. When you realized he was alive, you helped him. And he is alive because you acted fast enough to save him. He is getting all the help he needs right now. He gave you a sign, and you heeded it.”

Peter shook his head.

“June is right, Hon.” El replied. “Neal needs your support, not your guilt. He’s not going to blame you for anything. He knows you.”

 

TBC

END NOTES: I am referencing several different WC episodes here. And my favorite Neal/Diana interaction was the time they spent in the hotel. I just thought it was really sweet.

 

 

Chapter 3

 

It was Saturday, and Jones was in the office, working at his computer. He had called Diana on a hunch, and she had come in also. Neal was still not awake, but he was improving. Plus, he had both El and June watching over him. The ICU waiting room was beginning to feel a little crowded.

Diana strolled into the office. She saw that Jones hard at work. “What’s up, Jones?”

Jones looked up from his computer screen. “Do you remember what Fulton told Neal before he shot him?”

Diana went over to Jones’ desk. “Yeah, he said ‘The Syndicate’ knew all about Neal.”

Jones agreed. “Fulton wasn’t exaggerating by much. Turns out he was part of a huge group of interconnected thieves and con artists. They called themselves ‘The Syndicate.’ Plus, Fulton did a few years upstate. He was a snitch on the inside. He stayed alive by trading information.”

“And Neal Caffrey turning fed would be huge news on the inside.”

“…big enough news to keep Fulton from getting ‘shanked’ in prison.” Jones paused. “Neal’s life could be in danger.”

Diana was on the phone in seconds sharing the information with Peter. A U.S. Marshall was stationed outside Neal’s door within the hour.

 

WC WC WC WC WC

 

“Is that really necessary?” El asked, looking at the hulk of a man that they had sent from the Marshall’s office. “I mean is Neal in that much danger?”

“It’s just a precaution. Neal is in a very vulnerable state right now.” Peter admitted. “I can’t be here all the time. And we don’t know what these guys look like.”

“And they could go into Neal’s room disguised as a nurse, or a doctor.” El added, casting a wary eye at the hospital staff walking up and down the halls.

Peter nodded. Sometimes he didn’t like that El knew so much about how the criminal mind worked. It made her worry, and it made him worry for her.

Peter sighed. “Possibly, which is why at the beginning of every shift the Marshall guarding Neal will be given the names of each person who will be attending Neal that shift. And he will verify nametags. Name doesn’t match, or no name tag, they’re not getting in.”

“What about police, other FBI?” June asked. “What about other law enforcement?”

“The FBI and the U.S Marshalls are the only agencies involved. And as of right now, only Diana, Jones, and myself have clearance.” Peter explained.

Both June and El nodded, feeling a little bit more secure.

Kelly Hartman, or as Neal knew her Allison Carson, had been waiting for her opportunity for hours. She had been an ally of Neal’s in the past. But since Neal had ‘gone fed,’ she had been busted in an FBI sting Neal had been instrumental in. She had been caught by accident. She wasn’t even involved in the initial sting. She had just been in the wrong place at the wrong time. It has cost her her reputation among her peers. Plus, she was sent to the worst female correctional facility on the east coast.

Luckily for Kelly, she was a beautiful woman. She had long blonde hair and blue eyes. She was well endowed, and she was not afraid to use any of those assets to her advantage. She had bribed a male guard, at the prison, with her body. She was now, dressed as a nurse, trying to work the same magic on the marshal.

Seconds later Kelly was in Neal’s room. She inserted the needle of the syringe she had carried in with her into the IV attached to Neal’s arm. She was familiar with insulin. She knew how it worked, having a mother who was diabetic. She knew, very well, how insulin would react in the body of a person who didn’t need the drug.

Kelly slipped the syringe back into her pocket, carrying away all the evidence with her. She fussed over Neal for just a second, performing her ‘nursing’ duties. She then stroked his cheek. 

“Goodbye, Sinatra.” Kelly whispered in his ear before straightening up.

 

TBC

 

 

Chapter 4

 

AN: I did my research on insulin overdose. I hope I got everything right. And I know I haven’t said it yet, but thank you, so much, for your reviews and alerts. Enjoy!

 

Kelly Hartman had left the hospital by the time the Neal’s body began to react to the overdose of insulin. She has shed her nurse scrubs. And she had dropped the insulin syringe into one of the many trash receptacles that dotted New York’s sidewalks. 

Neal heart alarm blared. His heart raced as his body began to jerk, going into seizures. 

June stood up from the chair she had been in. She had seen a nurse come in earlier. But she had not even looked at her. She was so used to the hospital staff coming and going. She looked, wide-eyed, at Neal as he body reacted to the drug. The nurses pushed her out the door as they began their work. She stood at the observation window, not really even sure what had just happened. El had been to the cafeteria. She had food for both herself and June. She ran, as fast as he heels would let her, when she realized that a Code Blue had been called for Neal’s room. She stood, just as wide-eyed, outside the room watching the staff work through the window.

The nurses and doctors were baffled as they tried to save their patient. It was only when emergency blood work was run that they found the culprit. Neal had been given insulin. He didn’t have diabetes. And when the nurses checked the doctor’s orders, they found no mention of the drug. The dose, the staff concluded, had been given intentionally, in an effort to kill the patient.

“What…what happened?” El asked.

June shook her head. “I don’t…I don’t know. A nurse came in about 30 minutes ago. The marshall….” June paused. It broke her heart when she heard the doctor yell ‘clear.’ She didn’t want to, but she watched the doctor place the defibrillator paddles on Neal’s chest. She cringed as she watched his body arch off the bed.

The marshal, meanwhile, was watching the scene also. He was on the phone. But he looked as if he would be sick. The women didn’t know if he as on the phone with the Marshalls or White Collar.

June heard El sob softly beside her. She wrapped her arms around the younger woman as they both watched, in horror, as the paddles were placed, again, on Neal’s chest. June pulled El back away from the window as more hospital personnel poured into the room.

“Sshh.” June said, trying to comfort the young woman. “He’ll be okay. Neal is strong. He’s young. He’ll beat this.”

El nodded. She was feeling a little more reassured as she wiped her eyes. She pulled out her phone. “I have to call Peter.” 

June nodded, not taking her eyes off the scene in Neal’s room. 

El walked down the hall. She stopped a few steps away from Neal’s room.

Several more marshals had arrived by the time Peter showed up, with Diana and Jones in tow. These marshals were questioning their co-worker, and from the sound of things, it was not going well.

The questioning over, the guard’s boss came over to talk to Peter. “It appears Anderson allowed a pretty blonde nurse into the room. He said she had a name badge, but not picture on it, which he said he didn’t realize that the time. This hospital only uses picture ID’s.” The marshall stated, throwing a murderous glance at Neal’s former guard. “He said she was blonde-haired, blue-eyed and very well endowed.”

It was Peter’s turn to glare at the guard. “Well…I hope a few minutes ogling ‘Barbie’ was worth his job.”

The Marshall nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile, the doctors had brought Neal back. They had gotten his heart rate under control and the seizures had stopped with the administration of a drug to counteract the effects of the insulin.

Peter met El outside Neal’s door. 

“The doctors say Neal will recover from this. He will be okay.” El said wrapping her arms around Peter’s waist. “He’s going to make it.”

June then told Peter and the Marshall what she had started telling El. She mentioned the nurse that had been there when she was in the room. She then mentioned that that marshal must have let another nurse in after she had left to use the restroom. When June returned, she saw a nurse leave the room and walk in the opposite direction down the hall. She could only say that the nurse had blonde hair. June never saw her face.

The Marshall had confirmed June’s story. He said the nurse had come up to him. She had flirted, but she had told him that she was taking over for one of Neal’s nurses. The name she mentioned was on the Marshall’s list. He thought it was okay. He said she was not the last nurse in before Neal coded. But the last nurse didn’t have time to do anything. The insulin would have taken longer to act. She was in after the insulin had been administered.

They all came to the same conclusion. An attempt had been made on Neal’s life. Thankfully, it had not been successful.

 

TBC

 

 

Chapter 5

 

AN: After all the tension and drama, I thought we needed a little comic interlude. I hope you like what I came up with. And, as always, thank you for your support. And thanks ‘Guest’ for translating the interview. Enjoy! Jackie 

 

Neal was bored, no, beyond bored, stone-cold bored. He picked up his constant companion, his silver bell, and gave it a jingle.

Peter’s ears perked up. He had just carried Neal’s lunch dishes into the kitchen. He cast a despairing look at his wife. He sighed. “I was just up there.” He looked up at the ceiling. “I swear I am going to take that bell and….”

El looked at her husband, appalled. “You will do no such thing!” She paused, as she washed the dishes. “Besides, Neal is our guest.”

“I didn’t invite him.” Peter snapped.

“Now Peter…” El chided. “…you know we couldn’t leave him in that big house alone, June having to leave expectantly like that.”

“I would have checked on him, every other day…or so.” Peter grumbled.

El shook her head. “Peter!”

“And why did you have to give him that damned bell?” Peter asked.

“We’re down here, he’s upstairs. He couldn’t call out to us. It was a good idea, at the time.” El explained as she finished up the dishes and then wrapped her arms around her husband’s waist. She then looked at him confused. “Besides, I thought you took it away, now that he’s better.”

Peter nodded. “I did.” He blew out a puff of air. “Apparently he actually taught my Golden Retriever how to retrieve.” He looked, pointedly, at Satchemo.

“That’s right! I’m talking about you.” Peter said, looking at Satch. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

Satch wined and put his head down.

El couldn’t hold it anymore. She burst into laughter.

“No!” Peter said shaking his head. “There is no laughing, no laughter here.” 

El tried to stop, but the look on her husband’s face was priceless. She chuckled again. “Like you said, Satch is a Golden Retriever.” She managed, her statement ending in a snort, which only made her laugh harder.

El’s reaction only upset him more. “He’s my dog. I raised him from a puppy. He won’t retrieve for me.” Peter pouted.

“Neal is a charmer, Hon.” El replied, her giggles gone.

“Great! Yet another skill he can add to his repertoire, Dog Whisperer.” Peter said as he fell onto the couch.

“Look,” El said as she started for the stairs. “…I’ll go up and check on him. You watch the game, grab a beer. I’ll be back down in a few.”

El did indeed come back down a few minutes later, a grin on her face.

Peter saw her expression. “What?”

“Hon, granted neither Neal nor I are doctors, but we both agree that the thing with the bell is an anatomical impossibility.” El replied.

Peter just shot his wife a look before he turned his attention back to the ballgame.

 

TBC

END NOTES: I jumped ahead so that I could provide the comic relief. And so I could go ahead and wrap this story up. This next chapter, I hope, will answer all your questions. Also, if you don’t’ already know what Peter might have been planning to do with that bell, let you mind wander a little bit. I’m sure you’ll come up with the right answer. Thanks for reading.

 

 

Chapter 6

Something had been bothering Neal since had woken up in the hospital. He had been thinking about it this entire time. He didn't share his thoughts with Peter, even though he had already been back at work a couple of days. It was…there was nothing concrete there. Just a feeling, just a voice he had thought he heard from a woman. A woman, that he knew, was very ruthless, very dangerous.

Neal came into Peter's office and sat down.

"We're still not any closer to…." Peter stopped. He looked at Neal. The man looked nervous, anxious even. This was not typical 'Neal' behavior.

Peter waited for Neal to speak.

"I probably should have told you this before…" Neal began slowly. "…but I think I know who gave me the insulin."

Peter looked, wide-eyed at Neal. "What? Why didn't…!?"

Neal shook his head, understanding Peter's reaction. "When I woke up, I was…the drugs. I wasn't thinking clearly. I didn't know what was real. And I had had some crazy dreams. I just…I didn't know what to trust."

"So why now?" Peter asked.

"Sinatra." Neal replied.

Peter sighed and shook his head. "I'm not sure what Frank Sinatra has to do with our case, but I'll bite."

Neal grinned and shook his head. "Not Frank, Old Blue Eyes. An art thief from my past, I knew her as Allison Carson, but that was an alias. I remember…I know the voice, and I remembered someone calling me Sinatra." Neal explained. "We had given each other nicknames. She called me Sinatra. And I called her 'Barbie.'" Neal paused. "She was stunning…long blonde hair…."

Peter picked up the description. "…blue eyes and very well endowed."

Neal nodded, shocked. "How did you know?"

"The Marshall let someone with that description into your room. Her name badge said, Samantha Hall. But there was no picture on her ID. The hospital only uses photo ID. The Marshall missed that one, crucial detail." Peter replied. He had not let Neal read the reports on the shooting or the overdose yet. He was not sure Neal was ready for it all. And he had not really discussed it with Neal, for the same reason.

"She is as dangerous as she is beautiful. She's ruthless, and she has been known to kill for money." Neal replied. "If she's decided she wants me dead…, or if the price is right…." He shook his head.

Peter got Jones and Diana in his office and then sent them to run all the leads they could on this person. Neal told them all he could remember. They needed to find her before she realized that Neal had not died and came after him again.

WC WC WC WC WC

Almost a month later Neal and Peter were walking down a crowded New York street. Suddenly, Neal reached out and grabbed the arm of a woman walking in the other direction. She turned quickly, not realizing who had grabbed her arm. Neal quickly twisted her arm behind her back to immobilize her. He pushed her up against the wall.

"Caffrey!" Kelly Hartman hissed.

Peter was so surprised by Neal's action it took him a second to process it. Peter then realized who it was Neal had pressed against the wall.

"You're supposed to be dead! You Bastard!" Kelly hissed again.

"Well, obviously, Allison, or Samantha, or, oh yeah, Kelly. That's your real name isn't it, Kelly Hartman?" Neal asked, keeping the pressure on her arm. "I'm not." He flashed one of his winning smiles.

Kelly tried to wiggle out of Neal's grip.

"I wouldn't do that, Kelly." Neal said smugly, leaning in close to her left ear. "This guy here, with me, is a fed. You're surrounded by feds. We give the word, and one of the snipers will take you out." None of what Neal was saying was true, of course. Except that Peter was a fed. But Kelly didn't have to know that.

She continued to try to get free as Peter placed the cuffs on her.

THE END

END NOTES: Well folks, this is the end. I hope you liked my little tale. I know it may seem a little OOC for Neal to be so aggressive. But I see it this way, she DID try to kill him. Her methods were so very cold and callous that Neal would be pretty pissed and act just the way I wrote it. Jackie


End file.
